Mission 1: The Hydra's Tail

Bartholomew Wolfsbane. Journal Entry 1: A mysterious Pulse has slammed into the Earth, wreaking havoc worldwide. As a new S.H.I.E.L.D. recruit, I must prove myself far earlier than intended, restoring order to a New York under siege by opportunistic criminals of every stripe.

Journal Entry 2: Hydra forces, led by Viper, appear to be after a mysterious energy signature.

Barry still found it hard to believe that he went from S.H.I.E.L.D. trainee to leader of the Avengers Strike Team in a few short hours. It was so surreal, he wondered if it was all part of a video game tutorial skipping part of the plot development so that it could rush into the action. Barry got dressed and headed into the briefing room.

"We're not the only ones who noticed the energy signatures the Pulse left behind," Hill began. Intel places Hydra and Viper at the scene in the Meatpacking District."

"Viper," Fury said, "formerly Madame Hydra, is as vicious as the jackbooted terrorists she's leading. Hawkeye is already tracking them for us."

Hawkeye's voice came over the comms. "My ears are burning."

"Meet your backup, Hawkeye." Fury said.

"Backup? They better hurry. Viper's on the move, and it's too thick with Hydra agents for me to tackle her alone."

"You heard the man," Fury said to Barry. "You're on your own now, Agent Wolfsbane. Stop Hydra, stop Viper, and try to find out what they're after."

"Before we get back out there," Iron Man, aka Tony Stark, said, "research is almost back online, but there's still more diagnostics to run before we're in business."

"I don't like waiting, Stark," Fury said.

"And I don't like blowing up, Fury. As soon as we're ready, I'll let you know."

"Fair enough. Agent Wolfsbane, get back to your mission and do some good."

After replacing his needle gun with a Spirit-76, Barry equipped himself with a combat knife, several frag grenades, and a load of stimpacks. In the field, Barry, Iron Man, and Black Widow helped Hawkeye scour the Meatpacking District for Hydra agents. Wherever they went, Hydra thugs dropped like flies. An arrow here, a bullet there; the Avengers Strike Team was making short work of Hydra. Finally, the team tracked Viper down to a building, damaged by the Pulse. Barry had Iron Man fly around the building to watch for unexpected guests. Meanwhile, he, Black Widow, and Hawkeye, moved into the building.

"Move!" Viper said as they entered the room. "The scanners show it should be located over- Oh look, heroes."

"What are you and Hydra after, Viper?" Hawkeye said.

"What am I always after?"

"Power."

"Exactly. Stay still and I promise this won't hurt one bit. It should hurt all of them."

Four Hydra thugs stepped forward and raised their weapons as another bolted with a mysterious package. Two Hydra soldiers pistols, a Hydra burner had a flamethrower, and the Hydra cannon had a rocket launcher. Hawkeye shot an arrow in one of the soldier's neck. Black Widow rushed forward and grappled with the other soldier, zapping him with her wrist stingers. Barry rolled out of the way of a flame stream and shot the cannon in the face with his Spirit-76. Running up to the burner, Barry tackled her and slit her throat with the combat knife. Without warning, Viper shot Barry in the leg with a poisoned bullet. Then, she thrashed her whip at Hawkeye, who ducked under the attack. Keeping Black Widow at bay with her whip, Viper shot several bullets at Hawkeye, who masterfully evaded the danger. Hawkeye fired an arrow, which Viper knocked off course with her whip, but it still managed to scratch her shoulder. Barry injected his wounded leg with a stimpak and aimed his gun at Viper. Black Widow now engaged Viper, the two locked each other in vicious combat. A few seconds later, Iron Man crashed into the room and hit Viper with two repulsor shots. Realizing she had no hope of victory, Viper made a break for it and escaped the heroes.

Over comms, Hawkeye said to Fury, "Thanks, Fury. Your backup was great."

"Find what Viper was after?" Fury asked.

"No, Viper kept us distracted as one of her men escaped with whatever it was."

"Intel is working on locking onto that signal," Hill said, "may be headed towards the Empire State University."

"We need to follow that target, Agent," Fury said. "Return to the carrier."

Back on the Helicarrier, in the briefing room, Barry spoke to Hawkeye. "Hawkeye, the Avengers Strike Team could use a few more members, would you like to be a part of the crew?"

"Thanks for the invite, Agent Wolfsbane. Looks like a fun party."

"Don't get too comfortable, Agent Barton," Fury said.

"Wasn't planning to. Ready when you are, Wolfsbane."

"Great! Then, let's get going!" Barry replied.